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I know we talk about how streamers aren’t therapists because we’re literally not qualified but also, viewers, please imagine the emotional baggage of dealing with ur own shit off camera just to go live and have practical strangers tell you their deepest trauma 1/?)
and not know who they are, where they are, etc. or any other information you need to actually help them.
I have stayed up all night worrying about people who crossed very clear boundaries re: appropriate ways to handle their mental health (2/?)
I have stayed up all night worrying about people who crossed very clear boundaries re: appropriate ways to handle their mental health (2/?)
and been gaslit by community members who behave as if my providing them with real resources is me writing them off as a burden. I have ended streams early to talk with my mods about how to help strangers with suicidal ideations (3/?)
Streamers are HUMAN BEINGS. Many of us are young people who know as much about mental health as you do. We are NOT trained in crisis response. We are NOT capable of professionally distancing ourselves the way therapists are (4/?)
There are times I have considered quitting streaming because the simple act of trying to play video games with my friends has become three hours of me begging people I’ve never met to stop treating me like a therapist & access free resources. (5/?)
Tldr; Please. When a streamer asks you to seek out resources or provides you with a professional outlet, don’t assume we’re writing you off. We simply can’t help any more than we have, and we care about you enough to admit that. (6/6)
